From today, August 20, 2021, you will encounter the legendary raid boss Zacian in Pokémon GO for the first time. It will now be found in Level 5 raids in its heroic warrior form. We will reveal to you which counters you should best use against Zacian to quickly win the raid.
When does Zacian appear? The legendary Pokémon appears as part of the 3rd Hyper Bonus Event in Level 5 raids. You will find it there during the following period:
- from Friday, August 20, 2021, at 10:00 AM local time
- until Thursday, August 26, 2021, at 10:00 AM local time
Zacian (heroic warrior form) – All information and counters
What kind of Pokémon is this? Zacian is a legendary Pokémon of the Fairy type. It originates from Generation 8 and is known from the game series “Sword and Shield,” where it adorns the cover of “Sword.” Its counterpart is the legendary Pokémon Zamacenta.
Like other legendary monsters, Zacian has two different forms: the “heroic warrior form” and “King of the Sword.” In Pokémon GO, you can only encounter the heroic warrior form so far.
Is Zacian available as a Shiny? No. Unfortunately, you cannot obtain Zacian in its shiny form in the game so far.
Use these counters against Zacian (heroic warrior form)
Since Zacian in its heroic warrior form is of the Fairy type, it has a particular weakness to Poison and Steel type attacks. You should consider this when assembling your team and choose appropriate attackers. We have summarized which counters work best against Zacian with the help of Pokebattler’s overview (via pokebattler.com):
| Pokémon | Moveset |
| (Crypto-) Metagross | Bullet Punch and Meteor Mash |
| (Crypto-) Mewtwo | Confusion and Psychic |
| (Crypto-) Sarzenia | Acid and Mud Bomb |
| Dialga | Metal Claw and Iron Head |
| Roserade | Poison Jab and Mud Bomb |
| (Crypto-) Giflor | Acid and Mud Bomb |
| Stalobor | Metal Claw and Iron Head |
| Jirachi | Charge Beam and Doom Desire |
| Genesect | Metal Claw and Magnet Bomb |
| (Crypto-) Scherox | Bullet Punch and Iron Head |
| (Crypto-) Sleimok | Poison Jab and Sludge Bomb |
| (Crypto-) Skuntank | Poison Jab and Mud Bomb |
Use these Mega Evolutions against Zacian: You can also effectively use your Mega Evolutions against Zacian. These are particularly good counters:
- Mega Gengar with Sludge Bomb and Mud Bomb
- Mega Bibor with Poison Jab and Mud Bomb
- Mega Bisaflor with Vine Whip and Mud Bomb
- Mega Tauboss with Steel Wing and Brave Bird
Is Zacian (heroic warrior form) worth it?
According to the overview from gamepress, Zacian in its heroic warrior form can impress with high values in attack and defense (via gamepress.gg). However, its stamina is only average. Additionally, it can learn various Fast and Charged attacks.
Although it is a Fairy type Pokémon, it unfortunately does not have any Fast attack of this type available. This makes Zacian less interesting for use in raids or the PvP league. And Shiny hunters will also be disappointed that there will be no shiny variant of Zacian to catch.
However, since this Pokémon is appearing in the game for the first time, you should definitely secure at least one or two specimens.
Will you use raids with Zacian? And which team will you use against the legendary Pokémon? Let us know your opinion here on MeinMMO in the comments and exchange ideas with other trainers.
What is this Shiny Pin? And is it available in Pokémon GO? We have looked at what it’s all about and explain it to you.
